Notre Dame Coaches, Commits, Going Hard After Four-Star Houston Griffith
Several Notre Dame commits, in both the 2017 and 2018 class, are doing all they can to make sure the next two Irish classes are as stacked with talent as possible.
One of the main targets in the 2018 class is four-star Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy athlete Houston Griffith, who said he hears from several Notre Dame commits on a regular basis.
"The twins, (Jayson and Justin Ademilola) Ovie (Oghoufo) reached out to me, Jordan Pouncey, and Phil Jurkovec reached out to me last week as well," Griffith said.
Griffith also mentioned four-star running back commit Markese Stepp, who is becoming well known as a big-time recruiter for the Irish.
Griffith, the No.2 athlete in the class of 2018, said having all those guys come after him and wanting him to join the team is a good feeling.
“It shows they respect my game and they want me to be a part of the 2018 class,” Griffith said. “And it shows that I’ve got the talent to be part of the Notre Dame family.”
But it’s not just commits.
According to Griffith, the Notre Dame coaching staff has made sure to keep up regular contact with him.
“Pretty often,” Griffith said of his contact with the Irish. “At least once or twice a week. Coach Denson or Coach Lyght, they always text me to see how I’m doing down here, and just telling me things about Notre Dame.”
Primarily a defensive back for IMG, Griffith said he has a strong relationship with defensive backs coach Todd Lyght, and is excited about the potential of playing under a coach with his history.
“He’s a consensus All-American, so he knows what he’s talking about,” Griffith said. “I saw the defensive backs, my friends Julian Love started, so I was excited about that. It would mean a lot to play for him. He’s played at the highest level and won a national championship.”
Lyght is just part of the reason Griffith has made multiple visits to Notre Dame.
Last week, when IMG played on a Thursday, Griffith decided to make another trip to South Bend that weekend for the Stanford game, his fourth visit in the last year.
The history of Notre Dame, Griffith said, is what keeps drawing the four-star back toward South Bend.
“It’s the tradition Notre Dame has, and the amount of players they put in the NFL,” Griffith said. “Just the success Coach Kelly is, and the amount of talent that comes out of there each and every year.”
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